It means, when you keep taking the few warm weather dates a track has a give them to another track, and take away its big race dates and give them to another track, you're creating a self-fulling situation of making the victim track unsuccessful. In recent years, the IRB has stripped the Stickney meets of the Kentucky Derby, some of the few nice weather Spring dates they had (up until Mother's Day) which included many of their turf days, and now they're working on taking away the few warm Fall days they have including more turf days.

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I do not think the issue of dates and stakes races are "totally" unrelated.

Yes, they are unrelated.

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Who exactly are these "day to day" guys anyway?

Quite obviously, the ones represented by the ITHA who

a) had to cut a deal with AP for more IL bred races because there was a perception amone horsemen that AP didn't support the IL program, and more importantly, b) went and asked the IRB not to let AP increase its stakes purses.

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Once again I point out that the locals have done very well in the stakes program.

No doubt,agreement with your take is why our ITHA President and ED were in front of the IRB asking them not to raise those purses.

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Are you saying that those who run in the stakes program do not run in any other races? Are you saying that more of the money should not go towards those who have better horses and have put more money into racing but rather go towards those who have less quality horses?